Bringing Back Kay-Kay

August 5, 2024
Debut author Kothari centers adventure, poetry, and an indelible sibling bond in this character-driven mystery set in India. Tween Lena loves her older brother Kay-Kay, 15, even though Lena can’t seem to do anything right by their parents, who put Kay-Kay on a pedestal. Then Kay-Kay doesn’t return after two weeks away at summer camp. Because he left his backpack and friends behind on the train ride home, the police assume he is one of many runaway teens, despite Lena’s parents’ insistence that would never be the case. Vowing to track down her brother, Lena embarks on a clandestine investigative journey. During her quest, she discovers that her studious, seemingly perfect sibling was a secret poet; she uses his poems as clues to determine where he might have disappeared to and why. Contemporary India is depicted in sparse yet palpable detail via Lena’s urgent first-person narration in which she speaks directly to Kay-Kay. While this missing person mystery is action-packed, it is Lena’s devotion to her brother, rich inner world, and meditations on her complicated feelings for her family and her culture that drives the story forward. Ages 10–14.

September 15, 2024
Sibling love and rivalry are two sides of the same coin for a brother and sister growing up in Lamora, India. Tween Lena Krishnan, aka El-Kay, is enjoying an idyllic vacation from school without her 15-year-old brother, Karthik, aka Kay-Kay, who's gone away to summer camp in Goa. Her parents are finally being more attentive toward her, and she wishes he might stay away a bit longer. But everything changes when Kay-Kay doesn't make it home after camp. Although he boarded the overnight express train with his classmates, he wasn't there when it arrived in Lamora. The Krishnan family begins to unravel with his disappearance. Worse, the police are dismissive and seem to think her brother is a runaway. Lena decides to take matters into her own hands and look into his disappearance. Her investigation leads her to speak with Karthik's friends and teachers and learn about his time at camp. In the process, Lena finds out more about her brother--and herself. Despite some slow moments, the book is well paced overall. Kay-Kay's poems, which Lena discovers, are a tad banal, and the police response feels unconvincing, but Lena's first-person narration, enhanced by pages from her notebook, is engaging, and Kothari's writing is fun and assured. A fast-paced mystery thoughtfully exploring family relationships.(Mystery. 10-14)

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October 1, 2024
Grades 5-8 Lena Krishnan refuses to believe that her brother, Karthik, has disappeared. He was on his way home from summer camp with his closest friends, but his train returned without him. The police will only follow procedure, and Lena's parents are too distraught to do more than sip chai and stare at his empty seat on the sofa, so Lena makes it her mission to find Kay-Kay. After a quick search of his room, she discovers a bag full of clues: poems. Some are sad, some are joyful; but the one about a new friend leads Lena out to the dusty rails where Kay-Kay was last seen. What she finds at the end of the line is more than she could have hoped for. Debut author Kothari weaves a memorable tale of familial love and fidelity that is filled with compassion and everyday magic. With the beautiful countryside of India as a backdrop to the caper-like plot, this story will engage young fans of cozy mysteries and thrilling adventures alike.

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